Empire(Preview)
by Aquatic Decendants
Summary: What if he accepted the enemy's hand? What if he worked for Zarkon? What if the Blades hated him, but didn't know he worked for them? What if the paladins lost their red lion and need to find him before time runs out? Keith needs to pick a side for the sake of the Universe. Gen!
1. Chapter 1

**Hello guys! I am back with another fanfic that I hope you will like. I do not own Voltorn: Legendary Defender.**

 **Chapter One**

 **The Savagery of the Universe**

 **Summary: Saved from the Galra Empire, Keith discovers the horrifying secrets of his Emperor. He has a choice to fight against him, or with him.**

They didn't look like him. They looked much more different. He only had short fangs that _might've_ established him as galra. But he still felt out of place. Over time, the galra has accepted him as a half breed. Part galra and... something else they haven't come across. There were certain places that Sendak didn't want Keith to wander off to. A large door boarding a mysterious room from his view. A hallway that echoed with distant moans and pleads. He has always had nightmares of that hallway. Believed it was the ghosts of Alteans that destroyed their home 10,000 decapheebs ago.

Keith has never been on Daibazaal, but when he'd ask Sendak about it, he would look grim and just mention the dead alteans that have blown it apart. He never got the full story. The emperor, Zarkon, would call in every few feebs and it had always sent chills down Keith's spine.

His low growling voice scared him, along with his glowing purple eyes. He never voiced this to the other galra, since they worshipped Emperor Zarkon like a god. Dayak had taught him the proper ways of the galra and the expression they always use to their commanders, "Vrepit Sa". Also known as "The Killing Thrust". Victory or death was always the galra way. Every time that Zarkon would call in, Keith would be sent off to a ship without a 'mission'. When the others return, he is immediately transferred back to Sendak's cruiser.

Keith has never met his parents. He always wanted to. To see the strange species that gave him smaller fangs and pale white skin. It was his dream to come across someone like him. Dayak has overheard him say this and wasn't too pleased. She ended up giving him a ten varga long training session to toughen him up. It left him winded and tired.

That was another thing the galra wasn't to keen about him. He was so easily worn out. It made them impatient.

Only Dayak, Sendak and a lieutenant were awake when he felt it. He had gotten a nightmare about the moaning hallway, voices calling out to him.

" _Help! Please... get us out of here._ "

He had shot up in bed, taking in his surroundings. Dayak would be angry if she saw him awake but he was too scared to go back to sleep. He climbed out of bed to get a deep breath and a familiar walk around the cruiser.

It was quiet. He could hear voices from the main room, so he made sure to stay far away. His footsteps echoed in the halls, probably mistaken as a century or patrolling soldier.

Keith was far from the main room now when he felt something strange call out to him. For a tick he thought it was the hallway voices again, but this was different. More... ancient?

He looked around the cruiser. A large window was to his left, showing the empty void of space. Stars and constellations blinking in his view. The purple lights and silence made him scared. He thought maybe he should just turn around and go back to bed. But the pull was getting stronger. Like an... _energy_ needed him. Urgently.

He walked forward, the energy growing stronger and stronger. He noticed a muffled growl in the back of his head. As he came closer, a distant roar. It was about three more dobashes before he stopped in his tracks.

No. No, he had to turn back. Dayak and Sendak would be angry with him. It was the door he was banned from. The large door that blocked the mysterious room. He just had to go back to bed. But the pull was so strong…

He gasped in surprise as the doors whizzed open. Keith didn't even realize that he had stepped forward and scanned his hand for access. He averted his gaze and slammed the scanner again. The doors close shut and he let out the breath he didn't know he was holding. Something needed him in that room... but he didn't want to upset the others by his actions.

"What are you doing here!?" Keith spun around to see Dayak storm forward. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him away. "What have the commander and I told you about that room!?"

"I'm sorry!" Keith screamed hastily. "I wasn't gonna go -"

"Do not lie to me! Come!" She pulled him away from the door. "Back to your room!"

They walked back through the halls, the further away they got from that room, the more distant that feeling got. She scanned her hand as they came to his room and as soon as the doors opened she pushed him inside. "You stay in there, until morning. Is that understood?"

Keith blinked at her before he weakly nodded. "Y-yes, Dayak." The door banged shut and he heard her footsteps become distant down the hall. He pulled his knees up to his chest and suppressed his tears. He was still shaking from being caught. He heard the engines hum in the walls and floors. The muffled sounds of space outside his window.

He closed his eyes and tried to forget about the energy that was still swiftly calling him. The red flash he saw in that room. Something large hovered above him. Something with bright yellow eyes. But it was all a blur.

He stayed on the floor like that for a full varga. Trying to forget. He hated this place. He wanted to get off of this ship. He reached under his bed and grabbed the luxite blade he had hidden.

Sendak has mentioned that he found him with that blade. He didn't know where it came from, but Keith kept it through all these decapheebs. He studied the blue marking on the handle, tracing it with his hand. He felt connected to this blade for as long as he could remember.

Keith stared at it for a bit longer before he got up from the floor and walked over to the chest at the end of his bed. He opened it, taking out a space suit. He had lived here for seven decapheebs and was treated terribly by everyone on the ship. Maybe the best he could do was just step aside. Get away.

After he changed into the suit, he snuck out of his room. No one was in sight.

He walked down the halls, checking every corner for Dayak or Sendak. After what felt like forever, he arrived at the escape pods. He scanned his hand and stepped into the pod. He had a fair share of pilot training so he supposed he could manage. He closed the doors from inside and the pod activated.

He sat at the pilot's chair and pushed the pedals, making the ship burst forth. The doors opened in time for the pod to break into open space. The alarms probably went off in the cruiser but he wasn't sure. He just knew he had to get as far away as possible.

XXX

Keith piloted the ship for quite a while. Two quintants maybe. He was starting to get hungry and thirsty and the pod was starting to run out of power. He has lost visual of the cruiser a long time ago. He hasn't come across any planets he could land on. He felt like he was in the void, but he couldn't be that far off, right?

He was flying for five more vargas when he felt like he was in dangerous territory. The same unnerving feeling he got when he stood before those doors two quintants ago. Like he was trespassing.

Keith scanned the surroundings, looking for any sign of life. If maybe Sendak has found him. But there was nothing in sight. He yelped as the ship jerked and the lights blinked off. The only source of light he had left were the stars outside. He pulled his legs up on the chair and hugged his knees. He stared at the stars.

He might be dying, but at least he got away from the Empire. If that means to accept death, he will. He will never go back to that place. He buried his face into his arms, closing his eyes.

It was so silent in the pod. He didn't really mind it. It was an escape of being yelled at. From training. From hiding his emotions. From fear. He escaped. He felt like the weight of the Universe was lifted from his shoulders. Like he was floating in zero gravity. Just pretend for a couple of dobashes.

He kept his eyes closed. He felt sleep taking over. He was starting to drift off. But it didn't last long. The pod shook, making him stumble in his seat. He looked around and saw a purple glow through the windshield. No. No, this can't be happening. He shouldn't be found! He can't be! Not yet. Anything but this.

Keith had no choice. The pod was out of power. He wouldn't be able to escape. He had to admit defeat.

He couldn't stop the tears from falling down his face. He tried to hide his face with his hands. Dayak will punish him immensely for his misbehavior. Sendak won't allow him back into the cruiser. They might just throw him back out.

He felt the ship jerk as it entered the cruiser. He refused to show his face. Preparing himself to see the disappointment on their faces. Keith heard the distant murmurs of voices, drawing closer. He felt the cool air as the pod opened, still refusing to look at them. He felt someone's piercing gaze on the back of his head. He took a deep breath and looked back at Dayak.

But... it wasn't her.

A man with purple skin, long white hair and purple eyes were looking down at him. He was just as confused as Keith was. But the confusion was immediately overloaded by fear when he realized he was caught by a stranger.

"Wh-who are you?" Keith asked, curling further away from him. "What do you want from me?"

It took the man a while to reply. "I don't want to hurt you. How did you end up in the middle of space?"

"I..." Keith hesitated. "I can't trust you."

The man looked hesitant before he put a hand on Keith's shoulder. "My name is Prince Lotor. Who are you?"

Keith studied Lotor for a while before replying, "K-Keith."

Lotor smiled warmly at him before he offered his other hand. "Come with me. You look exhausted." Keith studied his hand and responded with pulling further away from him. "Don't worry. I'm not here to hurt you. You can trust me."

Keith looked into Lotor's eyes. He seemed sincere. But... he wasn't sure. It took Keith a while to make his decision. He finally accepted the offered hand and was helped out of his seat. Lotor helped him out of the pod, where a couple of centuries were waiting. "It's not a threat. No need to fire. Return to your stations." The centuries turned and left the room.

Keith took in his surroundings. It looked nothing like the cruiser he was on two quintants ago. Neither does it look like any ship he's been on. There were odd looking fighter ships around them too.

Lotor led him out of the room behind the centuries. He maneuvered him through the halls before they got to the main room. He sat him down in a chair nearby, sitting before him. "Now, if you can answer my question from before. How did a young child like you end up in the middle of space?"

Keith debated whether he should trust Lotor or not. Would he take him back to the Empire? Or would he protect him from them? He decided to test his luck. "I ran away from the Galra Empire."

"Really?" Lotor seemed surprised. "You must be talented not to get caught."

Keith averted his gaze from Lotor, "Well, it wasn't exactly easy."

Lotor nodded in understanding, "It never is. The cruisers are heavily guarded and centuries make sure no one turn or leave without permission. I'm surprised you made it out of there with no harm."

Keith looked at him in surprise. "How do you know so much about the Empire?"

Lotor looked disgusted as he said, "Cause I am the son of Emperor Zarkon. But I have been banished for inequitable reasons. Tell me, Keith. How do you feel about the Empire?"

Keith blinked at him. He was still processing that Lotor was Zarkon's son. He didn't expect him to be... but then the question sunk in. How did he feel about the Galra Empire? "Well... they are really mysterious. There were certain places on the cruiser that I wasn't allowed to go to. And they always kept me out of their missions. I... I guess I'm just confused."

Lotor nodded. "Understandable. Which cruiser were you on?"

"Sendak's Ship," Keith answered.

"That's the prisoner ship I believe," Lotor said.

Keith cocked up an eyebrow. "Prisoner ship?"

Lotor nodded. "They obviously didn't tell you this, but there are prisoners on that ship. Civilians from all over the galaxy have been captured and tortured there. Some were sent to Beta Traz. Some were sent to the gladiator rings. Others were tortured for information or quintessence."

Keith's eyes sprung wide with fear. "What? What's quintessence?"

"Quintessence is a substance with the highest known energy per unit volume in the universe. Raw quintessence is capable of being extracted from planets and refined into a standardized fuel for Galra technology. It is also possible to be extracted from live beings," Lotor explained. "Zarkon has used different techniques on getting this material for power over the universe. They are currently working on something called the "Komar". Since I was banished from the Empire, I know nothing of this experiment." Keith blinked at Lotor. This was all... so much to take in. He never considered the Empire his home, but it still struck deep.

Lotor gave Keith a couple of ticks to process the information before he started speaking again. "Do you trust the Empire?"

"No," Keith said it without hesitation. "Why... why would they do that? It's - It isn't right."

Lotor nodded. "I know. It isn't. There are so many better ways to use quintessence. And that is what I am doing. Making the universe fairer. Using quintessence the right way. There is a lot of twists and turns I don't want to make. And a lot of lives I can actually save. So I ask you -" Keith looked up as he offered his hand again, standing tall with confidence. "Will you join me and stop Zarkon's reign?"

Keith studied his hand for a while longer. Should he accept this offer? They were standing like that for a couple of more dobashes before Keith thought, _What do I got to lose?_

He reached out his hand and accepted Lotor's.

 **Comment if your intrigued! This was really hard to write and I'm so tired. I promise I will continue with my other fics soon, I am just really lazy sometimes. If I get up to three comments, I will post the next chapter!**


	2. Jus so ya know

Hey there person-that-enjoyed-this-but-most-likely-doesn't-read-this-but-if-there-are-others-who-liked-this-it's-for-you-too! This is a (somewhat) preview to the actual series that I am not writing here. It is on Archive of Our Own now. The entire series for whoever-even-reads-VLD-fanfics are under the username RedLion003 on AO3. So if you wanna read this series. You can. But it's not continuing here. That'll be all.


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